Time ripe to have 1st Indian defence unicorn soon: Rajnath Singh

Defence capital acquisitions have increased from Rs74,000 crore in FY21-22 to Rs1.2 lakh crore in FY24-25, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said on Tuesday, adding that the time is ripe to have the first defence unicorn (a startup with a valuation of $1 billion and above) of the country soon.

Speaking at the ‘Raksha Navachar Samvaad: Interaction with iDEX Startups’ event here, Rajnath Singh highlighted that under the government’s Public Procurement Policy, at least 25 per cent of annual procurement is reserved for Micro and Small Enterprises (MSEs), and over 350 items have been earmarked exclusively for them.

"India’s self-reliance in defence has moved from being a slogan to becoming a movement. From policy to practice and from innovation to impact, this transformation has been made possible by our innovators, startups, and young entrepreneurs," he underscored.

Rajnath Singh encouraged startups to set higher benchmarks, underlining that India has more than 100 unicorns today, but none in the defence sector, calling upon them to change that.

“Let the first Defence Unicorn of India emerge from among you. It will be a matter of pride not only for you but for the entire nation,” he added, reiterating the vision of Prime Minister Narendra Modi that the government will continue to stand firmly behind innovators and startups and will be with them at every step from ideation to implementation.